# Is there a grand "family tree" diagram of corporate ownership? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 19, 2007, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-grand-family-tree-diagram-of-corporate-ownership/419806 "2007-09-19T23:45:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![TLDRIDKJKLOLFTW](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/51bf81/32.png) [@TLDRIDKJKLOLFTW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TLDRIDKJKLOLFTW)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2007, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-grand-family-tree-diagram-of-corporate-ownership/419806/1 "2007-09-19T23:45:25Z")
I’ve always been curious to see who owns what and how high the whole family tree goes in corporate ownership - you know, the whole “CBS is owned by Viacom, which is actually owned by Seagrams, which is owned by General Mills” thing. Is there some sort of big diagram that I can look at that covers many of the major chains of ownership? ---
**Author:** ![Shamozzle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shamozzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shamozzle)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-grand-family-tree-diagram-of-corporate-ownership/419806/2 "2007-09-20T00:00:25Z")
Would it be a tree, or would it be a 300lb pot of spaghetti? ---
**Author:** ![mswas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e99b99/32.png) [@mswas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mswas)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-grand-family-tree-diagram-of-corporate-ownership/419806/3 "2007-09-20T00:05:14Z")
This isn’t quite what you are looking for but it’s in the vein. > **[theyrule.net](https://theyrule.net/)** > > Explore the boardroom connections of the largest US companies. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-grand-family-tree-diagram-of-corporate-ownership/419806/4 "2007-09-20T00:10:35Z")
It has been said the [RAMJAC Corporation](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RAMJAC) owns 19% of all the other companies in the United States. ---
**Author:** ![Gfactor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de053/32.png) [@Gfactor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gfactor)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-grand-family-tree-diagram-of-corporate-ownership/419806/5 "2007-09-20T00:15:18Z")
This isn’t quite it either (for one thing it’s text only) but: [RATUBOLA: Situs Slot Online 303 Jackpot Gacor Mudah Menang 2022](http://cjrarchives.org/tools/owners/) This is closer, but the last update was in 2003: [http://www.sarahstirland.com/archives/mediacon.htm](http://www.sarahstirland.com/archives/mediacon.htm) Best of show so far: [http://www.thenation.com/special/2006\_entertainment.pdf](http://www.thenation.com/special/2006_entertainment.pdf) Also good: [http://www.thenation.com/special/bigten.html](http://www.thenation.com/special/bigten.html) and: [http://www.nowfoundation.org/issues/communications/tv/mediacontrol.html](http://www.nowfoundation.org/issues/communications/tv/mediacontrol.html) All collected here: [http://www.takebackthemedia.com/owners.html](http://www.takebackthemedia.com/owners.html) Interactive stuff if you follow the links: [http://www.freepress.net/content/ownership](http://www.freepress.net/content/ownership) ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-grand-family-tree-diagram-of-corporate-ownership/419806/6 "2007-09-20T04:45:30Z")
[QUOTE=Shamozzle] Would it be a tree, or would it be a 300lb pot of spaghetti? [/QUOTE] In Japan it would be, except there would be four or five tree tops that had roots which intermeshed like spaghetti just below the top (from what I picked up while working at some smaller companies there.) That’s not really very true in the US. Corporations in the US are too competitive with each other to get into deals to co-own child corporations, for the most part, and most investment into startups is done by individuals, venture capitalists, and banks rather than corporations. ---
**Author:** ![matt\_mcl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@matt\_mcl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/matt_mcl)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2007, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-grand-family-tree-diagram-of-corporate-ownership/419806/7 "2007-09-20T04:46:28Z")
I’ve seen such a thing for Canadian corporations. ---
**Author:** ![DavidRo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@DavidRo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DavidRo)\ **Post date:** [April 28, 2011, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-grand-family-tree-diagram-of-corporate-ownership/419806/8 "2011-04-28T23:07:55Z")
… ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2011, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-grand-family-tree-diagram-of-corporate-ownership/419806/9 "2011-04-29T01:42:29Z")
Thank you for your insightful contribution to this discussion, **DavidRo**. I hope that we can benefit from your wisdom on many other topics as well. ---
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2011, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-grand-family-tree-diagram-of-corporate-ownership/419806/10 "2011-04-29T02:45:22Z")
> [@Gfactor](#): > > This isn’t quite it either (for one thing it’s text only) but: [http://cjrarchives.org/tools/owners/](http://cjrarchives.org/tools/owners/) > > This is closer, but the last update was in 2003: [http://www.sarahstirland.com/archives/mediacon.htm](http://www.sarahstirland.com/archives/mediacon.htm) > > Best of show so far: [http://www.thenation.com/special/2006\_entertainment.pdf](http://www.thenation.com/special/2006_entertainment.pdf) > > Also good: [http://www.thenation.com/special/bigten.html](http://www.thenation.com/special/bigten.html) > > and: [http://www.nowfoundation.org/issues/communications/tv/mediacontrol.html](http://www.nowfoundation.org/issues/communications/tv/mediacontrol.html) > > All collected here: [http://www.takebackthemedia.com/owners.html](http://www.takebackthemedia.com/owners.html) > > Interactive stuff if you follow the links: [http://www.freepress.net/content/ownership](http://www.freepress.net/content/ownership) Only 3 links are working! ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2011, 2:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-grand-family-tree-diagram-of-corporate-ownership/419806/11 "2011-04-29T02:57:22Z")
> [@etv78](#): > > Only 3 links are working! given enough years links do die. ---
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2011, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-grand-family-tree-diagram-of-corporate-ownership/419806/12 "2011-04-29T03:27:15Z")
> [@johnpost](#): > > given enough years links do die. Only noticed AFTER I replied that this is a zombie! :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [April 29, 2011, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-there-a-grand-family-tree-diagram-of-corporate-ownership/419806/13 "2011-04-29T03:36:13Z")
Since this seems to have been raised pointlessly, I’m going to close it. Colibri General Questions Moderator